


Phoenixes are Pests

by Minryll, waitingondaisies



Series: Shaped by Fire [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Hogwarts Second Year, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-25
Updated: 2020-08-25
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:40:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26065138
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Minryll/pseuds/Minryll, https://archiveofourown.org/users/waitingondaisies/pseuds/waitingondaisies
Summary: Fawkes follows Harry back to his dorm room after the incident in the Chamber of Secrets. After spending an entire morning trying to convince Fawkes to go back to Dumbledore, Harry is forced to accept that he now has a new pet. A pet that happens to be on fire.
Relationships: Fawkes & Harry Potter, Harry Potter & Ron Weasley
Series: Shaped by Fire [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1894339
Comments: 60
Kudos: 483





	1. Chapter 1

Harry stared at the phoenix perched stubbornly on his bedpost.

Fawkes stared back at him.

“Go back to Dumbledore,” Harry pleaded.

Fawkes trilled, but remained immobile— just as he had the last several times Harry had tried to tell the bird to leave. 

Harry had gone to Dumbledore’s office after rescuing Ginny from the Chamber of Secrets, and Fawkes had ridden out of the office on Harry’s shoulder. Harry hadn’t noticed, or thought anything of it, until he had awoken that morning with Fawkes still perched on his bedpost.

“I don’t think he’s gonna leave, mate,” Ron said.

“Well, what else am I supposed to do?” Harry asked with a helpless, frustrated gesture.

“I think you’re just gonna have to carry him back to Dumbledore.”

Harry sighed and nodded, continuing to observe Fawkes. Fawkes and his smug face and— and his coating of flames. Harry would have to make sure Fawkes stood on him like he had last night. 

Bracing himself, Harry stepped forward and held up his arm for Fawkes to step onto like he would for Hedwig.

Fawkes glanced at Harry’s arm, turned up his beak, then shuffled away.

“How am I supposed to get him to Dumbledore’s office if he won’t step up?”

Ron shrugged. “Bribe him onto your arm?”

And so, Harry tried that. He tried bribing Fawkes with many types of food— everything from chicken scraps to cupcakes— and none of them managed to budge the bird. Then Harry tried to coax the bird onto his shoulder, to scare Fawkes off the bedpost, to annoy him off. Harry tried, and he tried, and he tried, but nothing managed to get Fawkes to move.

By this point, Ron was lying on his own bed, watching Harry’s unsuccessful attempts to get Fawkes to move. “Maybe we should give up and go get Hermione. She said she’d be in the library all morning, maybe she’ll know what to do.”

Harry shook his head. “No, we can do this.” Harry sat down on his bed and stared at the smug bird on his bedpost.

Fawkes trilled. It sounded like he was laughing at Harry. 

“I need to move Fawkes. I can’t move Fawkes because he’s on fire and therefore too hot to touch—"

“Yes, we know all that,” Ron said.

“Shh, I’m thinking aloud. So when I take things out of the oven, those are hot things that I carry. What if I wore oven mitts when picking him up!”

Ron sat up. “Oh, that’s brilliant!”

Harry grinned. “Thank you. Now I just need a pair of oven mitts. Do you have any idea where I can find a pair?”

“Er… McGonagall could transfigure a pair for you?”

“You’re right!” Harry said, happy to have that problem solved. Then he glanced at Fawkes.

Fawkes stared back.

“Will you—"

“Yeah, I can go ask her to transfigure a pair. Make sure Fawkes doesn’t burn down our dorm room while I’m gone.”

“Thanks, Ron,” Harry said, shifting on his bed so he was facing Fawkes head on.

Ron went to see McGonagall, leaving Harry alone with Fawkes. For the first several minutes, Harry maintained his aggravated silence. If the bird would just get on Harry’s arm or shoulder, Harry could take him back to Dumbledore, and Harry could get on with his day.

Then, as the time wore on, Harry got bored and started talking to Fawkes. Fawkes, of course, could not talk back, so it was a very one-sided conversation. At first, Harry asked why Fawkes was being so bad. Then, when that line of questioning didn’t go anywhere, Harry transitioned to rambling about nothing in particular. 

“I’ve got the oven mitts!” Ron exclaimed, bursting back into their room.

Harry got up from the bed and went to meet Ron. “Alright, so I guess I’ll just— take Fawkes now,” he said.

“Good plan,” Ron said.

Harry pulled the oven mitts on and then, before he could think about it further, he scooped Fawkes up off of the bedpost. Harry realized that McGonagall must have enchanted the oven mitts too, because Harry could hardly feel any heat at all from the flaming bird.

“Guess I’ll see you in a bit,” Harry said, hefting the bird a bit. 

“I’ll be here when you get back,” said Ron.

Harry nodded and walked out of the room with Fawkes gripped firmly between the oven mitts. Fawkes seemed content to just sit in Harry’s hands. As Harry walked through the common room and the halls, a couple of students did a double take when they saw him. Harry had thought that more students would have been shocked by the sight of the two of them, but the older students were probably used to the sight of Fawkes.

By the time Harry was riding the staircase up to Dumbledore’s office, his hands were beginning to sweat. Between the physical exertion of hurrying through the castle and the warmth that managed to seep through from Fawkes, the oven mitts were quite warm inside. 

“You are a very rude bird,” Harry informed Fawkes.

Fawkes did not react.

Harry sighed and tried to dry his hands off on the inside of the oven mitts.

At the top of the stairs, Harry stared at the closed office door in consternation. He shuffled up to the door and turned so that he was standing parallel to it. Then he carefully raised his knee, but before he could tap it against the door, it swung open.

Harry set his foot back down before he could lose his balance and walked into the office.

“Come in, my boy! What brings you back so soon?” Dumbledore asked from behind his desk.

Harry held up Fawkes, the explanation tumbling from his mouth. “I needed to return Fawkes. I didn’t mean to take him, he just came with me last night, and he wouldn’t go back when I told him to, so I had to bring him back myself.”

Dumbledore got up from his desk and held out his arm for Fawkes to step up onto.

Fawkes squawked, and Harry felt the bird’s talons dig into the oven mitts.

“Fawkes!” Harry exclaimed. “What are you doing?” Harry shifted his hands in the oven mitts, trying to dislodge the talons. Then, when this attempt failed, Harry huffed and thrust the bird at Dumbledore.

Fawkes took off from Harry’s hands, and Harry sighed in relief. But instead of landing on Dumbledore as he should, Fawkes swooped around and landed on Harry’s shoulder.

Harry glared at the bird, frustrated and annoyed. “I’m sorry, sir, I don’t know why he’s being like this!”

“I do believe Fawkes has taken a liking to you,” Dumbledore said with a serene smile. He walked around and sat back in his desk chair.

“But he’s still your bird!” Harry protested, shuffling forward to try and deposit Fawkes on Dumbledore’s desk.

Fawkes simply clung to Harry’s robes.

Harry gave in and straightened up. “What should I do?” Harry asked, desperate to be rid of the bird that wasn’t his.

“Take him home?” Dumbledore suggested.

Harry froze. He glanced at the bird on his shoulder.

Fawkes trilled, the noise pleased.

“It sounds like Fawkes agrees with this plan.”

Harry glanced down and realized that he’d never taken his sweaty hands out of the oven mitts. He did so, stashing the mitts away in his pockets for later. “But what if he burns down the house?” Harry protested.

“Oh, is that why you are wearing those gloves?” Dumbledore asked.

Harry glanced at the on-fire bird riding his shoulder. “He’s on fire,” Harry felt compelled to point out.

Dumbledore steepled his fingers beneath his chin. “A phoenix’s flames do not burn those who are pure of heart. You, Harry, are safe from Fawkes’s fire.”

Harry stared at Dumbledore, dubious. Then he turned his head to glance at Fawkes and realized that he couldn’t feel the heat of the flames on his face. “Are you sure?” Harry asked, still doubtful and unwilling to risk getting burnt on anything less than a certainty.

“I am more than certain,” said Dumbledore.

Harry had to be sure before he could consider taking Fawkes back to the Dursleys. He reached out with one shaking hand and gave Fawkes a stroke. The flames were cool, and all Harry felt— besides the smooth texture of Fawkes’s feathers— was a light tickling sensation.

“And his flames won’t burn the house?” Harry asked.

“Of course not. Look, there is his old perch,” Dumbledore said, pointing at it, “it’s made of wood, and there is not a single char mark on it.”

“Oh,” Harry said. “Wait— Fawkes is a phoenix and the Dursleys are Muggles. Can I really have him there?”

Dumbledore nodded. “Muggles are unable to see the flames of a phoenix. All they will see is a chicken with red colouring. They might think it unusual, but then, having an owl is also unusual.”

Harry nodded, looking at Fawkes once again. “I— well. I guess I’m sorry for taking your pet?”

“That is quite alright, my boy. Phoenixes are free to choose their partner, and Fawkes has chosen you.”

* * *

“Harry, why do you still have Fawkes?” Ron asked.

“Well, I guess I have a new bird now.”

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you all for reading! please leave a comment letting us know what you thought!!
> 
> down below is a link to my discord server where i share neat sneak peaks, spoilers, and where i hang out for chattin' so you ought to join and come hang out!
> 
> [LINK HERE](https://discord.gg/9EJ4kgC)
> 
> can't wait to talk to you there!


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry acquires a fire chicken

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out more of Min's art on [tungle](https://minryll.tumblr.com/) and [twotter](https://twitter.com/_minryll)


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